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Marshal of GunsmokeWard Bailey arrives to become...
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Brief Synopsis

Ward Bailey arrives to become the Marshal of the unincorporated and lawless town of Gunsmoke where the outlaws have prevented an honest election. He quickly locks up some of them including one seen committing murder. But their defense lawyer turns out to be his brother who gets them all acquitted.

The town of Gunsmoke is being terrorized by outlaws Lon Curtis, Pete Larkin and their gunmen, so noted lawman Ward Bailey is summoned to restore law and order. Ward has been sent for by banker Sam Garrett, who explains to the lawman that Gunsmoke was a peaceful cattle community until silver was discovered. Ward accepts the post of marshal, and his first official act is to ban side arms. Later, Ward learns that his younger brother Tom, a lawyer, is on his way to Gunsmoke to marry popular saloon singer Ellen Carey. Soon thereafter, Ward is told by medicine salesman Glow-Worm Johnson that Larkin and his men are planning to rob miner Nugget Newton of his gambling winnings. Ward arrives on the scene too late to save Nugget from being robbed and murdered, but catches two of Larkin's men and arrests Larkin upon his return to town. Larkin sends a telegram to his boss Curtis, who hires Tom, who has just gambled away his life's savings, to defend the accused murderers. Despite his brother's objections, Tom defends Larkin and his gang, and gains their acquittals because of a lack of evidence, which leads Ellen to break their engagement in anger. With the local elections scheduled for the very next day, Curtis holds a party at his hacienda to rally support for his platform, and Tom learns how corrupt his employer is when he sees Larkin kill miner Drycreek during a crooked poker game. Tom then publicly denounces Curtis, and calls upon the locals to join him in voting for Garrett's platform. Later, Ellen overhears Curtis plotting to frame Tom for bribing defense witness Dewey Sanders, but she is captured by Curtis and his men before she can warn the Baileys. When Sanders attempts to cash the bribery check, however, he ends up in a gunfight with Tom and is killed. Tom is then accused of both bribery and murder, but escapes before he can be arrested. Ward, in turn, is fired as marshal when he asserts his brother's innocence. Meanwhile, upon learning that he is losing the election, Curtis orders his men to destroy some of the ballots by dressing as Indians and attacking the Railhead stagecoach. With Curtis already on his way to Gunsmoke, Tom, Ward and Glow-Worm arrive at his hacienda, release Ellen and learn of the crooked rancher's plans. The two brothers then return to Gunsmoke, where they capture Curtis and his men, while Glow-Worm manages to ride the runaway Railhead stage into town just in time to win the election for the law and order ticket. The city of Gunsmoke is then offically incorporated, and Curtis and his gang are safely placed in jail.